Methods and apparatus to communicate via a welding arc

ABSTRACT

Methods and apparatus to communicate via a welding arc are disclosed. An example welding-type power supply includes a power converter, a weld monitor, and an arc modulator. The power converter outputs welding power to sustain a welding-type arc at a welding-type torch. The weld monitor monitors one or more aspects of a weld performed using the welding-type arc and the welding-type torch, and selects an audio message based on the one or more aspects. The arc modulator configured to modify the welding-type arc to output the selected audio message as a plasma speaker.

BACKGROUND

This disclosure relates generally to welding systems and, moreparticularly, to methods and apparatus to communicate via a welding arc.

Conventional welding and cutting systems provide feedback to the weldingoperator using conventional output devices such as analog meters, lightemitting diode (LED) indicators, 7-segment LED displays, liquid crystaldisplays, and/or the like, located on a panel of a welder or wirefeeder. Conventional welding systems may provide feedback to theoperator before, during, and/or after welding, but providing effectivefeedback to an operator during welding has traditionally been the mostdifficult.

SUMMARY

Methods and apparatus to communicate via a welding arc are disclosed,substantially as illustrated by and described in connection with atleast one of the figures, as set forth more completely in the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an arc welding system including an examplewelding-type power supply configured to communicate via a welding arc,in accordance with aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of another arc welding system including anexample arc speaker converter configured to communicate via a weldingarc, in accordance with aspects of this disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart representative of example machine-readableinstructions which may be executed by disclosed example apparatus tocommunicate via a welding arc.

The figures are not necessarily to scale. Where appropriate, similar oridentical reference numbers are used to refer to similar or identicalcomponents.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Disclosed example methods and apparatus play audio to a weld operatorduring welding by modulating audio through the welding arc. The audiomay be modulated onto the welding arc at the power supply, at a wirefeeder, and/or via a separate device.

Conventional methods of providing audio to an operator involves using adynamic speaker, which has limitations in a welding environment. Forexample, the cost of the speaker, difficulty with placement of thespeaker, and/or controlling the appropriate sound level of the speakerare typical issues involved with providing audio feedback in a weldingenvironment with a speaker. Disclosed examples provide an audible voicenear the operator, with an appropriate sound level, and withoutnecessarily requiring extraneous devices in the welding system toproduce the audio.

Disclosed examples leverage the arc that is already present in an arcwelding, gouging, and/or cutting operation to provide audio feedback.Such arcing operations produce a plasma column between the electrode andwork. Disclosed examples modulate an audio signal onto the currentproducing the plasma column to create an audible voice. For example,amplitude modulation is used to generate sound with the arc or plasmacolumn.

Some disclosed examples provide audio feedback to the operator viaplaying one or more selected audio messages using the arc as a plasmaspeaker. Example operator feedback may include operational informationsuch as weld voltage, weld current, wire feed speed, weld sequence, heatinput, remaining duty cycle, and/or arc quality metrics. Other exampleinformation includes training feedback such as travel speed, contact tipto work distance, travel angle, and/or work angle.

Disclosed example audio feedback includes a voice or tones. For example,a voice may state verbal information to the operator reflective of aninstruction (e.g., move faster, move slower) or information (e.g., heatinput exceeding limit). Instead of an audible voice, different soundsand tones may be used. For example, tones or sounds that are associatedwith known concepts, such as chimes, chirps, alarms, sirens, and/orother alerts. The tones or sounds may be associated with an event orpending event, such as a thermal shutdown event. Additionally oralternatively, the welding system could loop a continuous tone or soundclip when the weld is considered acceptable (or unacceptable), andgenerate a different tone or no tone when the weld is unacceptable (oracceptable). The continuous tone may be a signature sound, or a soundthat uniquely identifies the type or brand of the power supply 102 tothe listener, such as when the monitored aspects of the weld meet aquality threshold or standard.

As used herein, the term “welding-type arc” refers to a plasma arc ofthe type produced during arc welding, arc gouging, and/or plasma cuttingoperations. As used herein, the term “welding-type power supply” refersto a power supply that can provide power suitable for welding, plasmacutting, and/or arc gouging.

Disclosed example welding-type power supplies include a power converter,a weld monitor, and an arc modulator. The power converter outputswelding power to sustain a welding-type arc at a welding-type torch. Theweld monitor monitors one or more aspects of a weld being performedusing the welding-type arc and the welding-type torch, and selects anaudio message based on the one or more aspects. The arc modulatormodifies the welding-type arc to output the selected audio message as aplasma speaker.

In some examples, the arc modulator modulates an audio signal onto thewelding power to cause the welding-type arc to output the audio signalas sound, and the audio signal is representative of the selected audiomessage. Some example welding-type power supplies further include astorage device to store the audio message. In some such examples, thestorage device stores the audio message as digital audio data, and thearc modulator converts the digital audio data to an audio signal andmodifies the welding-type arc to output the audio message. Some suchexamples further include a control circuit, where the storage devicestores a plurality of audio files including the audio message, and thecontrol circuit selects one of the plurality of audio files to be outputas audio by the arc modulator based on receiving feedback information.

Some examples further include a digital-to-analog converter to convertthe audio message to an analog audio signal, where the arc modulatormodifies the welding-type arc to output the audio message based on theanalog audio signal. In some examples, the arc modulator includes aresampler to convert the audio message from a first sampling rate to asecond sampling rate corresponding to a control frequency of the powerconverter, where the arc modulator modifies the welding-type arc usingthe audio message at the second sampling rate.

In some examples, the weld monitor receives information from a sensor,in which the weld monitor determines the one or more aspects of the weldbased on the information from the sensor. In some examples, the weldmonitor determines the audio message based on at least one of: a torchangle of the welding-type torch, a travel speed of the welding-typetorch, a weld voltage, a weld current, heat input, an error condition, awelding-type gas pressure, an identified acceptable welding-typecondition, an identified unacceptable welding-type condition, atemperature of the welding-type power supply, or a duty of thewelding-type power supply. In some examples, the arc modulator modifiesthe welding-type arc by amplitude modulation of an audio signal on tothe welding power.

Some example welding-type power supplies further include acommunications interface to receive audio information from an externaldevice, in which the arc modulator modifies the welding-type arc tooutput the audio message based on the audio information from theexternal device. Some such examples further include an amplifierconfigured to condition the audio information from the external devicebased on a welding-type variable. Some examples further include a volumecontrol device, in which the arc modulator modifies the welding-type arcto output the audio message based on an input from the volume controldevice.

Disclosed example welding-type devices include a welding-type circuitcoupler to couple the welding-type device to a welding-type circuit thatis configured to conduct welding-type current for sustaining awelding-type arc at a welding torch, and an arc modulator to modulate anaudio signal onto the welding-type current to output audio using thewelding-type arc as a plasma speaker.

Some example welding-type devices further include a storage deviceconfigured to store audio information, in which the arc modulatormodifies the welding-type arc to output the audio based on the audioinformation. In some examples, the storage device stores the audioinformation as digital audio data, in which the arc modulator transcodesthe digital audio data to the audio signal and to modify thewelding-type arc to output the audio based on the audio signal.

In some examples, the welding-type device is at least one of a wirefeeder, a remote control pendant, or a weld current audio injector. Insome examples, the welding-type circuit coupler includes at least oneof: a weld cable tap configured to couple to a weld cable or a workcable by piercing a sheathing of the weld cable or the work cable or aweld cable connector configured to receive the weld cable. Some examplesfurther include a communications interface to receive audio informationfrom an external device, in which the arc modulator modifies thewelding-type arc to output the audio based on the audio information fromthe external device. In some examples, the welding-type circuit couplerincludes at least one of a current transformer to magnetically couplethe arc modulator to the welding-type circuit, or first and secondwelding-type circuit connectors to physically couple the arc modulatorto the welding-type circuit.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an arc welding system 100 including anexample welding-type power supply 102 configured to communicate via awelding-type arc 104. As described in more detail below, the examplewelding-type power supply 102 includes a weld monitor 106 and an arcmodulator 108 to monitor a weld and to provide audible feedback via thewelding arc 104 based on the monitoring.

The example power supply 102 powers, controls, and supplies consumablesto a welding application. In some examples, the power supply 102directly supplies input power to a welding-type torch 134. In theillustrated example, the power supply 102 is configured to supply powerto welding operations and/or preheating operations. The example powersupply 102 may also provide power to a wire feeder to supply anelectrode wire to the welding-type torch 134 for various weldingapplications (e.g., gas metal arc welding (GMAW), flux-cored arc welding(FCAW)).

The power supply 102 includes a power converter 110, which may includetransformers, rectifiers, switches, and so forth, capable of convertingthe AC and/or DC input power to AC and/or DC output power as dictated bythe demands of the system (e.g., particular welding processes andregimes). The power converter 110 converts input power to welding-typepower based on a weld voltage setpoint and outputs the welding-typepower via a weld circuit.

In some examples, the power converter 110 is configured to convert theinput power to both welding-type power and auxiliary power outputs.However, in other examples, the power converter 110 is adapted toconvert input power only to a weld power output, and a separateauxiliary converter is provided to convert input power to auxiliarypower. In some other examples, the power supply 102 receives a convertedauxiliary power output directly from a wall outlet. Any suitable powerconversion system or mechanism may be employed by the power supply 102to generate and supply both weld and auxiliary power.

The power supply 102 includes a controller 112 to control the operationof the power supply 102. The power supply 102 also includes a userinterface 114. The controller 112 receives input from the user interface114, through which a user may choose a process and/or input desiredparameters (e.g., voltage, current, particular pulsed or non-pulsedwelding processes, and so forth). The user interface 114 may receiveinputs using any input device, such as via a keypad, keyboard, buttons,touch screen, voice activation system, wireless device, etc.Furthermore, the controller 112 controls operating parameters based oninput by the user as well as based on other operating parameters.Specifically, the user interface 114 may include a display 116 forpresenting, showing, or indicating, information to an operator. Thecontroller 112 may also include interface circuitry for communicatingdata to other devices in the system, such as a wire feeder. For example,in some situations, the power supply 102 wirelessly communicates withother welding devices within the welding system. Further, in somesituations, the power supply 102 communicates with other welding devicesusing a wired connection, such as by using a network interfacecontroller (NIC) to communicate data via a network (e.g., ETHERNET,10baseT, 10base100, etc.).

The controller 112 includes at least one controller or processor 120that controls the operations of the welding power supply 102. Thecontroller 112 receives and processes multiple inputs associated withthe performance and demands of the system. The processor 120 may includeone or more microprocessors, such as one or more “general-purpose”microprocessors, one or more special-purpose microprocessors and/orASICS, and/or any other type of processing device. For example, theprocessor 120 may include one or more digital signal processors (DSPs).

The example controller 112 includes one or more storage device(s) 123and one or more memory device(s) 124. The storage device(s) 123 (e.g.,nonvolatile storage) may include ROM, flash memory, a hard drive, and/orany other suitable optical, magnetic, and/or solid-state storage medium,and/or a combination thereof. The storage device 123 stores data (e.g.,data corresponding to a welding application), instructions (e.g.,software or firmware to perform welding processes), and/or any otherappropriate data. Examples of stored data for a welding applicationinclude an attitude (e.g., orientation) of a welding torch, a distancebetween the contact tip and a workpiece, a voltage, a current, weldingdevice settings, and so forth.

The memory device 124 may include a volatile memory, such asrandom-access memory (RAM), and/or a nonvolatile memory, such asread-only memory (ROM). The memory device 124 and/or the storagedevice(s) 123 may store a variety of information and may be used forvarious purposes. For example, the memory device 124 and/or the storagedevice(s) 123 may store processor executable instructions 125 (e.g.,firmware or software) for the processor 120 to execute. In addition, oneor more control regimes for various welding processes, along withassociated settings and parameters, may be stored in the storage device123 and/or memory device 124, along with code configured to provide aspecific output (e.g., initiate wire feed, enable gas flow, capturewelding current data, detect short circuit parameters, determine amountof spatter) during operation.

The power supply 102 receives primary power 126 (e.g., from the AC powergrid, an engine/generator set, a battery, or other energy generating orstorage devices, or a combination thereof) as the input power,conditions the primary power 126, and provides an output power to one ormore welding devices and/or preheating devices in accordance withdemands of the system. The primary power 126 may be supplied from anoffsite location (e.g., the primary power 126 may originate from thepower grid).

In some examples, the welding power flows from the power converter 110through a weld cable 132 to a welding-type torch 134. A work cable 136is coupled between a workpiece 138 and the power supply 102 (e.g., tothe power converter 110). The example weld cable 132 is attachable anddetachable from weld studs at each of the power supply 102 (e.g., toenable ease of replacement of the weld cable 132 in case of wear ordamage). In some examples, the power supply 102 includes or isimplemented in a wire feeder.

In some examples, a gas supply 128 provides shielding gases, such asargon, helium, carbon dioxide, and so forth, depending upon the weldingapplication. The shielding gas flows to a valve 130, which controls theflow of gas, and if desired, may be selected to allow for modulating orregulating the amount of gas supplied to a welding application. Thevalve 130 may be opened, closed, or otherwise operated by the controller112 to enable, inhibit, or control gas flow (e.g., shielding gas)through the valve 130. Shielding gas exits the valve 130 and flowsthrough a cable 132 (which in some implementations may be packaged withthe welding power output) to the wire feeder which provides theshielding gas to the welding application. In some examples, the powersupply 102 does not include the gas supply 128, the valve 130, the weldcable 132, and/or the work cable 136.

The weld monitor 106 may be implemented and/or executed by thecontroller 112 and/or the processor 120 (e.g., executing theinstructions 125 stored in the memory 124 and/or the storage device(s)123). The weld monitor 106 monitors one or more aspects of a weldperformed using the welding-type arc and the welding-type torch 134.

Based on the one or more aspects of the weld, the weld monitor 106selects one or more audio message(s) 140. The example audio message(s)140 may be stored in the memory 124 and/or the storage device(s) 123 asaudio files in any compressed and/or uncompressed audio format(s),including .WAV, .MP3 or its progeny, and/or any other format. Theexample controller 112 (e.g., implementing the weld monitor 106) selectsone or more of the plurality of the stored audio files to be output asaudio by the arc modulator 108, based on receiving feedback information.

The arc modulator 108 is coupled to the output of the power converter110 (e.g., to the weld cable 132 and the work cable 136) and modifiesthe welding-type arc to output the selected audio message as a plasmaspeaker. As used herein, a plasma speaker refers to a loudspeaker whichcreates sound by varying air pressure via a high-energy electricalplasma (instead of a solid diaphragm). In some examples, the arcmodulator 108 modulates an audio signal onto the welding power to causethe welding-type arc 104 to output the audio signal as sound. Forexample, the arc modulator 108 uses amplitude modulation to modulate thecurrent on the weld circuit, which modulates the current in the arc 104.As illustrated in FIG. 1, the arc modulator 108 may modulate the currentby adjusting a current command determined by the controller 112executing a voltage-controlled or current-controlled control loop tocontrol an output current or output voltage from the power converter110. By adjusting the current command, the arc modulator 108 may beimplemented in software by the controller 112 without additionalelectrical connections between the controller 112 and the powerconverter 110. As the amplitude of the current through the plasma columnof the arc 104 is varied, the plasma changes the air pressure around theplasma column. The changes in air pressure create sound pressure wavesthat result in audible sound.

The arc modulator 108 may scale the audio to adjust the sound leveland/or to maintain an average signal level of substantially zero. Thearc modulator 108 adds the scaled array to the welding arc current tocause the audio to play via the arc 104. By adjusting the audio tomaintain an average signal level of substantially zero, the averagewelding current remains substantially the same as when the arc modulator108 is not outputting the audio via the arc 104.

The arc modulator 108 may include, for example, one or more codecs toprocess stored audio message(s) 140 and/or a digital-to-analog converter(DAC) 142 to convert the audio message(s) 140 from digital format to theanalog form for modulation onto the welding power.

Additionally or alternatively, the arc modulator 108 may include aresampler 144 to convert the audio information from a first samplingrate (e.g., a sampling rate of the selected audio file) to a secondsampling rate that corresponds to a control frequency of the powerconverter 110. The arc modulator 108 modifies the arc 104 (e.g.,modulates the audio signal onto the welding circuit) using the audioinformation at the second sampling rate. In some examples, thecontroller 112 modifies a pitch of the audio message(s) 140 to create amore “normal” pitch (e.g., to more closely represent how the audiomessage would sound via conventional speakers) prior to providing theaudio message(s) 140 to the arc modulator 108.

The weld monitor 106 may receive information from one or more sensor(s)146 and determine one or more aspects of the weld, and/or select the oneor more audio message(s) 140, based on the information received from thesensor(s) 146. Example sensors that may be used include image sensors orcameras (e.g., a single image sensor, visible spectrum sensors, infraredspectrum sensors, stereoscopic sensors, high dynamic resolution imagesensors, etc.), laser scanners, voltage sensors, current sensors,temperature sensors, wire speed sensors, position, orientation and/ormotion sensors (e.g., accelerometers, gyroscopes, etc.), The sensor(s)146 may include inertial measurement units (IMUs) such as multi-axisgyroscopes, multi-axis accelerometers, and/or multi-axis magnetometersto detect, encode, and/or measure movement of the helmet (e.g., turning,vibration, traveling and shaking of the helmet as the wearer's headmoves to follow the arc).

Image sensors may be used in conjunction with markers printed onstickers or pre-etched on the workpiece 138 and/or the welding-typetorch 134 to track gun position, orientation and motion relative to theseam. The sensor(s) 146 may provide to the controller 112 informationsuch as gun travel speed, gun orientation relative to the joint (i.e.torch angle and travel angle) and wire placement relative to the centerof the joint can be extracted from image processing.

Based on the information from the sensor(s) 146, the power converter110, and/or any other source of weld information, the example weldmonitor 106 may determine, and select the audio message(s) 140 based on,a torch angle of the welding-type torch 134, a travel speed of thewelding-type torch 134, a weld voltage, a weld current, heat input, anerror condition, a welding-type gas pressure, an identified acceptablewelding-type condition, an identified unacceptable welding-typecondition, a temperature of the welding-type power supply, a duty of thewelding-type power supply, and/or any other welding-related information.Additionally or alternatively, the controller 112 may include one ormore counters to monitor and count welding activities, and select amessage for playback based on the status of the counter(s). For example,the counter(s) may count weld activities such as a number of weldsperformed (e.g., tack welds, completed welds, etc.), a number of partswelded per hour, a quantity of welding consumable used, or any othertrackable data. If a welder intends to make 10 tack welds during a partfitting, the counter(s) may count the number of tack welds performed. Ifthe counted number played back during the “final” weld is not equal tothe number expected by the welder, the welder knows to review the tackwelds performed and to take corrective action.

The user interface 114 may include a communications interface 148, suchas an audio jack or other digital data connector and/or audio connector,to receive audio information from, for example, a music player or othersource of audio. The user interface 114 may provide audio received viathe audio connector to the controller 112 and/or the arc modulator 108for output via arc 104. The controller 112 and/or the arc modulator 108may perform resampling, scaling, DAC, and/or any other appropriateoperations for playing the received audio via the arc 104. The userinterface 114 would permit an operator to listen to personal audioand/or personal alerts (e.g., from a smartphone or other computingdevice), and/or use any other audio source, via the welding arc 104.Examples of other external devices include a welding accessory, aworkplace public address system, or a workplace alert/bell system.

The arc modulator 108 may include an amplifier 150 to condition theaudio information from the external device via the communicationsinterface 148 based on a welding-type variable and/or any other factor(e.g., a minimum volume level). Additionally or alternatively, the userinterface 114 may include a volume control device 152 to enable a userto control a volume level of audio played via the arc 104. The arcmodulator 108 receives volume information from the volume control device152 and modifies the arc 104 to output the audio based on the input fromthe volume control device 152.

In some examples, the controller 112 provides welding processcharacteristics to the arc modulator 108, which processes the audioinformation based on the type of welding process. For example, in shortcircuit welding, the arc 104 is repeatedly temporarily extinguished andrestarted. A typical shorting frequency is 100 Hz, where 25% of the timethe weld process is in the short circuit state (i.e., no arc), and 75%of the time the weld process in the arc state. The controller 112 mayprovide the average shorting frequency and/or other short circuit datato enable the arc modulator 108 to improve the quality of the sound bytaking the lack of arcing into account during processing.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of another arc welding system 200 including anexample arc speaker converter 202 configured to communicate via awelding arc. The system 200 of FIG. 2 includes a welding-type powersupply 204 coupled to the welding-type torch 134 via the weld cable 132and coupled to the workpiece 138 via the work cable 136. The examplesystem 200 includes a wire feeder 206 coupled between the power supply204 and the torch 134 via the weld cable 132. The wire feeder 206 alsoincludes a voltage sense lead 208 to couple the wire feeder 206 to theworkpiece 138.

The system 200 also includes an arc speaker converter 202 coupled to theweld cable 132 and to at least one of the work cable 136 or the voltagesense lead 208 to enable the arc speaker converter 202 to modulate asignal across the arc 104. The arc speaker converter 202 includes theexample weld monitor 106 and the example arc modulator 108 describedabove. A welding-type circuit coupler 210 couples the arc speakerconverter 202 to the welding-type circuit. An example welding-typecircuit coupler 210 includes first and second welding-type circuitconnectors 212, 214 to physically couple the arc speaker converter 202to the welding circuit. The connectors 212, 214 couple the arc speakerconverter 202 to the weld cable 132 and to at least one of the workcable 136 or the voltage sense lead 208 to enable the arc speakerconverter 202 to modulate a signal across the arc 104.

In some other examples, the welding-type circuit coupler 210 couples thearc speaker converter 202 to the weld cable 132 and/or the work cable136 via a current transformer. Use of the current transformer instead ofphysical connections enables electrical isolation between the arcspeaker converter 202 (and any circuitry and/or devices connected to thearc speaker converter 202) and the weld circuit. By using a currenttransformer, the arc speaker converter 202 may also be more easilyconnected to the weld circuit than using physical connections. Any otherwelding-type circuit coupler may be used to couple the arc speakerconverter 202 to the welding-type circuit. For example, the arcmodulator 108 may be electromagnetically coupled to the weld cable 132or the work cable 136 by wrapping a coil around the weld cable 132 orthe work cable 136.

The arc speaker converter 202 further includes the example controller112, the user interface 114, the display 116, the processor (s) 120, thestorage device(s) 123, the memory 124, the instructions 125, audiomessage(s) 140, the DAC 142, and/or the resampler 144 of FIG. 1. The arcspeaker converter 202 may be used with existing welding equipment, suchas the power supply 204 and/or the wire feeder 206 to providecommunications via the arc 104 in a similar manner as described above.

The example arc speaker converter 202 may be implemented in the wirefeeder 206, a remote control accessory, and/or a dedicated audioinjection device.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart representative of example machine-readableinstructions 300 which may be executed by disclosed example power supply102 of FIG. 1 and/or the arc speaker converter 202 of FIG. 2 tocommunicate via a welding arc. The example instructions 300 may beexecuted by a logic circuit, such as the processor 120 or the controller112 of FIGS. 1 and/or 2, and/or stored in a machine-readable storagedevice such as the storage device(s) 123 and/or the memory 124 of FIGS.1 and/or 2.

At block 302, the example weld monitor 106 determines whether the arc104 is present (e.g., whether an arc welding operation is taking place).For example, the weld monitor 106 may determine that the arc is presentbased on receiving a signal from the sensor(s) 146 (e.g., a currentsensor, a light sensor), based on a control state of the controller 112controlling the output of the power converter 110, and/or any otherinput representative of the arc state. If the arc is not present (block302), the weld monitor iterates block 302 to continue monitoring for thepresence of the arc 104.

When the arc is present (block 302), at block 304 the weld monitor 106collects welding-related data. For example, the welding-related data maybe collected from the sensor(s) 146, the power converter 110, thecontroller 112, and/or any other source. At block 306, the weld monitor106 determines one or more aspects of the weld based on thewelding-related data. For example, the weld monitor 106 may determinethe position and/or travel speed of the torch, weld parameters such asvoltage and/or current, and/or any other measured and/or derivedaspect(s) of the weld.

At block 308, the example weld monitor 106 determines whether acommunication is to be provided to the operator. For example, thedetermined aspect(s) of the weld may cause the weld monitor to determinethat the operator is to be instructed to slow down or speed up a torchtravel speed, adjust a torch angle, adjust a weld current and/orvoltage, and/or another informational and/or instructional message tothe user. If a communication is not to be provided to the operator(block 308), control returns to block 302.

If a communication is to be provided to the operator (block 308), atblock 310 the weld monitor 106 selects one or more audio messages to beplayed to the operator based on the aspect(s) of the weld.

At block 312, the arc modulator determines (e.g., via the resampler 144)whether the sampling rate of the selected audio message(s) correspond tothe control frequency of the controller 112. The control frequency maybe the rate at which the controller 112 executes a control loop toupdate a weld current and/or voltage. If the sampling rate does notcorrespond to the control frequency (block 312), at block 314 theresampler 144 resamples the digital audio data in the selected audiomessage(s). In some examples, such as when the arc modulator 108 sourcesand sinks current independently of the controller 112, blocks 312 and314 may be omitted.

After resampling (block 314), or if the sampling rate alreadycorresponds to the control frequency, at block 316 the arc modulator 108determines whether the audio message requires pitch correction. Forexample, playback of digital data may be distorted when using an arc asthe playback medium. If the audio message has not been previously pitchcorrected and the arc characteristics require that the pitch becorrected to increase the clarity of the message, the arc modulator 108may perform the pitch correction. If the audio message requires pitchcorrection (block 316), at block 318 the example arc modulator 108corrects the pitch of the selected message(s).

After correcting the pitch (block 318), or if pitch correction is notrequired (block 316), at block 322, the arc modulator 108 converts(e.g., via the DAC 142) the selected audio message(s) from the digitaldata (e.g., resampled, pitch corrected, and/or otherwise modified asappropriate) to an analog audio signal. At block 322, the arc modulator108 modulates the analog audio signal over the weld current. Themodulation results in playback of the audio through the welding-type arc104.

After modulating the analog audio signal (block 322), control returns toblock 302.

The present methods and systems may be realized in hardware, software,and/or a combination of hardware and software. The present methodsand/or systems may be realized in a centralized fashion in at least onecomputing system, or in a distributed fashion where different elementsare spread across several interconnected computing systems. Any kind ofcomputing system or other apparatus adapted for carrying out the methodsdescribed herein is suited. A typical combination of hardware andsoftware may include a general-purpose computing system with a programor other code that, when being loaded and executed, controls thecomputing system such that it carries out the methods described herein.Another typical implementation may comprise an application-specificintegrated circuit or chip. Some implementations may comprise anon-transitory machine-readable (e.g., computer readable) medium (e.g.,FLASH drive, optical disk, magnetic storage disk, or the like) havingstored thereon one or more lines of code executable by a machine,thereby causing the machine to perform processes as described herein. Asused herein, the term “non-transitory machine-readable medium” isdefined to include all types of machine-readable storage media and toexclude propagating signals.

As utilized herein the terms “circuits” and “circuitry” refer tophysical electronic components (i.e. hardware) and any software and/orfirmware (“code”) which may configure the hardware, be executed by thehardware, and or otherwise be associated with the hardware. As usedherein, for example, a particular processor and memory may comprise afirst “circuit” when executing a first one or more lines of code and maycomprise a second “circuit” when executing a second one or more lines ofcode. As utilized herein, “and/or” means any one or more of the items inthe list joined by “and/or.” As an example, “x and/or y” means anyelement of the three-element set {(x), (y), (x, y)}. In other words, “xand/or y” means “one or both of x and y.” As another example, “x, y,and/or z” means any element of the seven-element set {(x), (y), (z), (x,y), (x, z), (y, z), (x, y, z)}. In other words, “x, y and/or z” means“one or more of x, y and z.” . . . As utilized herein, the term“exemplary” means serving as a non-limiting example, instance, orillustration. As utilized herein, the terms “e.g.,” and “for example”set off lists of one or more non-limiting examples, instances, orillustrations. As utilized herein, circuitry is “operable” to perform afunction whenever the circuitry comprises the necessary hardware andcode (if any is necessary) to perform the function, regardless ofwhether performance of the function is disabled or not enabled (e.g., bya user-configurable setting, factory trim, etc.).

While the present method and/or system has been described with referenceto certain implementations, it will be understood by those skilled inthe art that various changes may be made and equivalents may besubstituted without departing from the scope of the present methodand/or system. For example, block and/or components of disclosedexamples may be combined, divided, re-arranged, and/or otherwisemodified. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt aparticular situation or material to the teachings of the presentdisclosure without departing from its scope. Therefore, the presentmethod and/or system are not limited to the particular implementationsdisclosed. Instead, the present method and/or system will include allimplementations falling within the scope of the appended claims, bothliterally and under the doctrine of equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A welding-type power supply, comprising: a powerconverter configured to output welding power to sustain a welding-typearc at a welding-type torch; a weld monitor configured to: monitor oneor more aspects of a weld being performed using the welding-type arc andthe welding-type torch; and select an audio message based on the one ormore aspects; and an arc modulator configured to modify the welding-typearc to output the selected audio message as a plasma speaker.
 2. Thewelding-type power supply as defined in claim 1, wherein the arcmodulator is configured to modulate an audio signal onto the weldingpower to cause the welding-type arc to output the audio signal as sound,the audio signal representative of the selected audio message.
 3. Thewelding-type power supply as defined in claim 1, further comprising astorage device configured to store the audio message.
 4. Thewelding-type power supply as defined in claim 3, wherein the storagedevice is configured to store the audio message as digital audio data,the arc modulator configured to convert the digital audio data to anaudio signal and to modify the welding-type arc to output the audiomessage.
 5. The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 4, furthercomprising a control circuit, the storage device configured to store aplurality of audio files including the audio message, the controlcircuit configured to select one of the plurality of audio files to beoutput as audio by the arc modulator based on receiving feedbackinformation.
 6. The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 3,further comprising a digital-to-analog converter to convert the audiomessage to an analog audio signal, the arc modulator configured tomodify the welding-type arc to output the audio message based on theanalog audio signal.
 7. The welding-type power supply as defined inclaim 3, wherein the arc modulator comprises a resampler to convert theaudio message from a first sampling rate to a second sampling ratecorresponding to a control frequency of the power converter, the arcmodulator configured to modify the welding-type arc using the audiomessage at the second sampling rate.
 8. The welding-type power supply asdefined in claim 1, wherein the weld monitor is configured to receiveinformation from a sensor, the weld monitor configured to determine theone or more aspects of the weld based on the information from thesensor.
 9. The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1, whereinthe weld monitor is configured to determine the audio message based onat least one of: a torch angle of the welding-type torch, a travel speedof the welding-type torch, a weld voltage, a weld current, heat input,an error condition, a welding-type gas pressure, an identifiedacceptable welding-type condition, an identified unacceptablewelding-type condition, a temperature of the welding-type power supply,or a duty of the welding-type power supply.
 10. The welding-type powersupply as defined in claim 1, wherein the arc modulator is configured tomodify the welding-type arc by amplitude modulation of an audio signalon to the welding power.
 11. The welding-type power supply as defined inclaim 1, further comprising a communications interface configured toreceive audio information from an external device, the arc modulatorconfigured to modify the welding-type arc to output the audio messagebased on the audio information from the external device.
 12. Thewelding-type power supply as defined in claim 11, further comprising anamplifier configured to condition the audio information from theexternal device based on a welding-type variable.
 13. The welding-typepower supply as defined in claim 1, further comprising a volume controldevice, the arc modulator configured to modify the welding-type arc tooutput the audio message based on an input from the volume controldevice.
 14. A welding-type device, comprising: a welding-type circuitcoupler configured to couple the welding-type device to a welding-typecircuit that is configured to conduct welding-type current forsustaining a welding-type arc at a welding torch; and an arc modulatorconfigured to modulate an audio signal onto the welding-type current tooutput audio using the welding-type arc as a plasma speaker.
 15. Thewelding-type device as defined in claim 14, further comprising a storagedevice configured to store audio information, the arc modulatorconfigured to modify the welding-type arc to output the audio based onthe audio information.
 16. The welding-type device as defined in claim15, wherein the storage device is configured to store the audioinformation as digital audio data, the arc modulator configured totranscode the digital audio data to the audio signal and to modify thewelding-type arc to output the audio based on the audio signal.
 17. Thewelding-type device as defined in claim 14, wherein the welding-typedevice is at least one of a wire feeder, a remote control pendant, or aweld current audio injector.
 18. The welding-type device as defined inclaim 14, wherein the welding-type circuit coupler comprises at leastone of: a weld cable tap configured to couple to a weld cable or a workcable by piercing a sheathing of the weld cable or the work cable or aweld cable connector configured to receive the weld cable.
 19. Thewelding-type device as defined in claim 14, further comprising acommunications interface configured to receive audio information from anexternal device, the arc modulator configured to modify the welding-typearc to output the audio based on the audio information from the externaldevice.
 20. The welding-type device as defined in claim 14, wherein thewelding-type circuit coupler comprises at least one of: a currenttransformer configured to magnetically couple the arc modulator to thewelding-type circuit; or first and second welding-type circuitconnectors configured to physically couple the arc modulator to thewelding-type circuit.